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Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs |OT| - This Little Piggy Cried AAHHH All the Way to Hell

Trying to get a sense of how long the game is to decide if I want to finish tonight. Just got to the
main factory where I'm tasked with draining the impure wate, ie I just snuck past the first real enemy
FInd it interesting that when I
died the game didn't reset but I woke up in a cage.
 

vladdamad

Member
Just finished, and, well, that was pretty fucked up is all I'll say. Some of the late game stuff is seriously disturbing, I really don't get how people aren't finding the game scary. Sure, there's not that many 'boo' moments, but the atmosphere is so intense that I had to take breaks at some points. Ending was great, but as with Dear Esther I'm going to have to dig into online discussion to figure out the details. Is there a spoiler thread? The Chinese Room did it again, can't wait for Everybody's Gone to the Rapture
 

big_z

Member
I haven't finished it yet but I hate the blue filter they put over the screen. It destroys the contrast and strains the eyes.
 

big_z

Member
Check the thread, you can fix/remove it.

awesome just tried it and while you lose the cold feel the effect gives it makes much easier on the eyes. I hate when games or movies use lazy color filters, it's like tinted cataracts.
 

Easy_D

never left the stone age
You didn't use headphones? o_0 playing horror games without headphones is such a disservice to them, especially a game like this with so many audio cues,creaks and groans going on

I wonder how many people play without headphones or good surround for a game like this actually. A huge part of the scare factor or atmosphere/immersion comes directly from the audio. That goes for almost all horror games actually.

To me a game like this should ONLY be play at night with no lights and with headphones cranked up high. Unless it's impossible to do so

I didn't use headphones for the first one either and I was as immersed as can be :p.

Maybe AAMFP needed to prime me by displaying the same message the Dark Descent did. Though I realised that the main reason I wasn't able to immerse was the fact that the volume on my subwoofer was off. Gonna have to replay it again later methinks.

I made a spoiler thread to discuss the plot for anyone that's interested

Cool. I can't stop trying to wrap my mind around things.
 

Easy_D

never left the stone age
Not to be that guy but.

F6EFD92E04AF091A485D02FCE69AB4A68DBCF852

I can't unsee the face.
 

void666

Banned
Something i hate is when horror games rely on sudden loud noises to scare you.
Well, it's not scary. It's just annoying. I'm walking around and then.... BOOOOOM... GODDAM MY EARS!!!
 

vladdamad

Member
Something i hate is when horror games rely on sudden loud noises to scare you.
Well, it's not scary. It's just annoying. I'm walking around and then.... BOOOOOM... GODDAM MY EARS!!!

You should be OK with this one. There are a couple at the start, but then the rest of the game is more focused on building atmosphere as opposed to jump-scaring you
 

dark10x

Digital Foundry pixel pusher
You didn't use headphones? o_0 playing horror games without headphones is such a disservice to them, especially a game like this with so many audio cues,creaks and groans going on
I heavily disagree.

I have a pretty decent pair of headphones and a dedicated headphone amp and it simply doesn't compare to the power of my 7.1 setup. The soundscape created by the speakers along with the sub is much more immersive and hard hitting.

Of course, this suggests that you have a proper surround setup that is well calibrated with a good receiver and set of speakers. If you're missing those components it will definitely diminish the effect. However, given the option, I always go for sound system over headphones.
 
I'm going to try to update to the latest Nvidia beta drivers tonight because whenever I enable vsync in the control panel, it locks the game at 30fps for me and its pissing me off. I disable vsync and I get 60fps with tearing.

In-game vsync doesn't appear to do squat.
 

Artanisix

Member
I heavily disagree.

I have a pretty decent pair of headphones and a dedicated headphone amp and it simply doesn't compare to the power of my 7.1 setup. The soundscape created by the speakers along with the sub is much more immersive and hard hitting.

Of course, this suggests that you have a proper surround setup that is well calibrated with a good receiver and set of speakers. If you're missing those components it will definitely diminish the effect. However, given the option, I always go for sound system over headphones.

Agreed, my 5.1 setup is faaaar more effective than my headphones.
 

NAPK1NS

Member
Just played two hours or so last night and I can't wait to see more. The comparisons between the two games reminds me of BioShock and Infinite. Since both carry the same name, people are bound it analyze the sequel as non-isolated.

Trouble is, these are different games with very different missions. It feels like an Amnesia game but the direction is entirely new. In many ways this is a much better game than DD. Stronger art and sound, all unfurled through a much clearer level design.

I mean, sure, I didn't bit my nails nearly as much but the oppressive atmosphere and suggestion that something horrible is going on is not 'worse' horror, but different. Can't wait to see what happens next.
 

Tak3n

Banned
Just finished

I did not find it scary, but still very good story...

The first half of the game was weakest for me, there is a turning point about halfway through, you know it when you get there

And from then on the game is sheer brilliance, dense, dark, really good deep story telling...
 

Jackpot

Banned
This was really disappointing IMO. Barely any scares and I disagree that Amnesia 1 "immunised" us. From Penumbra 1 to Amnesia DD it's been an ever escalating increase in horror. And other games like Outlast managed to pull it off just fine.

It's rather obvious what's the cause. There's very little game to this game. Monster encounters were the core of nearly every Dark Descent scare, in Pigs they're just an inconsequential afterthought. You spend 90% of your time seeing them from behind the safety of a gate or window. No thrill from exploration either. Amnesia at least gave you the option of flipping piano lids or throwing books. This engine has one of the best physical object interactions available to players and they don't use it.

I get what they were going for in terms of art design. Big pipes and boilers in an insane labyrinthian design that doesn't seem to come from an human architect, like an MC Escher picture. Problem is it only achieves this a few times, the rest of the time it's what your normal game would have as their mundane "industrial" and "sewer" levels, which I suspect is down to limitations in the scope of levels due to lack of resources, either financial or technical.

It's an egregious failure of story if a "twist" is the most obvious answer to a mystery.
The saboteur was YOU all along! dun dun dunnn. Who saw that coming?
I was also waiting for some sort of horrific development to the machine's nature, but it's exactly what it seems to be in the first levels -
an automated murder & mutilation machine that creates pig people. That was expected from the get go and I kept waiting for some sort of reveal that shows the horrific purpose of it, but all we got was minor details about the morbid efficiency of its design or how the offcuts go up to the house for serving.

Another thing that symbolises just how much they messed up the nature of this game is that stupid 4th wall breaking
note that says "all these repetitive tasks, it's like I'm trapped in a game! yuk yuk yuk".
How can you be so stupid as to try and intentionally break the immersion and atmosphere of the game with such poor humour directed at the player instead of the character?

I really see thechineseroom's roots in this game. If Frictional was involved with the game, then shame on them. If they weren't then they should ask for their money back. So many years of waiting and it's just a mildly thrilling interactive story.
 

CheesecakeRecipe

Stormy Grey
I'm really enjoying the divisive opinions, even if I disagree with some of them. I'm still trying to form all my thoughts together on it for a review, but part of me wants to do outlast first so I can address the very obvious "which one should I?" comparisons accurately.
 
I'm really enjoying the divisive opinions, even if I disagree with some of them. I'm still trying to form all my thoughts together on it for a review, but part of me wants to do outlast first so I can address the very obvious "which one should I?" comparisons accurately.

In my experience, doing walkroughs for both games at the same time, jumping back and forth, really do showcase what each game is going for and the pro/cons of each. I love what each of them does but they both have some faults.
 

sam27368

Banned
This was really disappointing IMO. Barely any scares and I disagree that Amnesia 1 "immunised" us. From Penumbra 1 to Amnesia DD it's been an ever escalating increase in horror. And other games like Outlast managed to pull it off just fine.

It's rather obvious what's the cause. There's very little game to this game. Monster encounters were the core of nearly every Dark Descent scare, in Pigs they're just an inconsequential afterthought. You spend 90% of your time seeing them from behind the safety of a gate or window. No thrill from exploration either. Amnesia at least gave you the option of flipping piano lids or throwing books. This engine has one of the best physical object interactions available to players and they don't use it.

I get what they were going for in terms of art design. Big pipes and boilers in an insane labyrinthian design that doesn't seem to come from an human architect, like an MC Escher picture. Problem is it only achieves this a few times, the rest of the time it's what your normal game would have as their mundane "industrial" and "sewer" levels, which I suspect is down to limitations in the scope of levels due to lack of resources, either financial or technical.

It's an egregious failure of story if a "twist" is the most obvious answer to a mystery.
The saboteur was YOU all along! dun dun dunnn. Who saw that coming?
I was also waiting for some sort of horrific development to the machine's nature, but it's exactly what it seems to be in the first levels -
an automated murder & mutilation machine that creates pig people. That was expected from the get go and I kept waiting for some sort of reveal that shows the horrific purpose of it, but all we got was minor details about the morbid efficiency of its design or how the offcuts go up to the house for serving.

Another thing that symbolises just how much they messed up the nature of this game is that stupid 4th wall breaking
note that says "all these repetitive tasks, it's like I'm trapped in a game! yuk yuk yuk".
How can you be so stupid as to try and intentionally break the immersion and atmosphere of the game with such poor humour directed at the player instead of the character?

I really see thechineseroom's roots in this game. If Frictional was involved with the game, then shame on them. If they weren't then they should ask for their money back. So many years of waiting and it's just a mildly thrilling interactive story.

That's not the twist..
Also, Frictional were developing the game for almost a year, the chinese room finished with it last year
 
I am playing through the real Amnesia again... I am very disappointed with this new Amnesia and I can only think that it is chineseroom's fault since I've played pneumbra etc. and they all manage it fine.
 

gdt

Member
I heavily disagree.

I have a pretty decent pair of headphones and a dedicated headphone amp and it simply doesn't compare to the power of my 7.1 setup. The soundscape created by the speakers along with the sub is much more immersive and hard hitting.

Of course, this suggests that you have a proper surround setup that is well calibrated with a good receiver and set of speakers. If you're missing those components it will definitely diminish the effect. However, given the option, I always go for sound system over headphones.

Agreed, my 5.1 setup is faaaar more effective than my headphones.

Yep. Being literally surrounded by sound (and the sub kicking in the bass subtly....and not so subtly) is insane. I love it.
 

Cudder

Member
Played for about an hour last night before bed, and really enjoyed it. First things first; no, it's not as scary as the first game (so far), but it excels in other areas.

The game is very well optimized and runs like a dream on my MBPr, on high settings. I had to run TDD on Medium and even then it was sub 30fps. Graphics are a lot better/smoother too.

The audio and sound design is immaculate. One of the best I've heard in a horror game. Everything just sounds so real. They did a real good job of recording and mixing the sounds so they actually feel like they are being heard in the current space that you're in.

And the environments in the first hour alone are more varied than what was in the entirety of The Dark Descent, so I'm loving that.

Can't wait to play more tonight.
 
I heavily disagree.

I have a pretty decent pair of headphones and a dedicated headphone amp and it simply doesn't compare to the power of my 7.1 setup. The soundscape created by the speakers along with the sub is much more immersive and hard hitting.

Of course, this suggests that you have a proper surround setup that is well calibrated with a good receiver and set of speakers. If you're missing those components it will definitely diminish the effect. However, given the option, I always go for sound system over headphones.

Oh well if you have a proper surround setup then yeah I'd agree. From his post I though he was playing with TV speakers or something. I guess that was my bad jumping to conclusions

Oh definitely I'd say a good 5.1/7.1 system. Even a half decent one would be better. Gives a MUCH better sense of space around you and makes thngs sound like they're off in the distance and running around in the room with you

Makes me regret selling my 5.1 Onkyo setup :( but my new place hasn't got the room for it. I miss that audio greatly
 

eXistor

Member
Just finished it. Hated it and it's my biggest disappointment of the year so far. I was bored throughout, scares were obvious, no tension. For a game with just about no gameplay and a heavy focus on story you'd expect the story to be, I dunno, good? I was done in 3 hours and I will never play it again. I don't know whose to blame here, Frictional? TCR? Both? Either way it's a misstep for both developers.

Goddammit, I really wanted to love this. After the disappointment that was Outlast I was so ready to call this one out as the true horror experience of the year. I like that soulless, mechanical piece of crap Outlast more than this. Fucking Outlast! I might be overreacting a bit here, but I'm just so disappointed by this, so you'll have to forgive my hyperbole.
 

Inkwell

Banned
Just finished it. Hated it and it's my biggest disappointment of the year so far. I was bored throughout, scares were obvious, no tension. For a game with just about no gameplay and a heavy focus on story you'd expect the story to be, I dunno, good? I was done in 3 hours and I will never play it again. I don't know whose to blame here, Frictional? TCR? Both? Either way it's a misstep for both developers.

Goddammit, I really wanted to love this. After the disappointment that was Outlast I was so ready to call this one out as the true horror experience of the year. I like that soulless, mechanical piece of crap Outlast more than this. Fucking Outlast! I might be overreacting a bit here, but I'm just so disappointed by this, so you'll have to forgive my hyperbole.

I agree with you. I'm not as upset, but definitely disappointed. I had a similar reaction to yours when it comes to Outlast. Outlast had almost no subtlety. Interactions with other characters and enemies felt really cheesy and almost comical. The story was was typical video game garbage that did nothing interesting or new. I still enjoyed it more than A Machine for Pigs :(.

I found the setting and story more interesting in AMFP. I liked the atmosphere a bit too. It's too bad the game was so linear and straight forward. I felt very little tension with enemies after the first encounter, and the "puzzles" were quite terrible. I think I remember the Chinese Room guys knocking Myst for hiding parts of the game behind difficult puzzles, but they went a bit too extreme in the other direction. Following a linear path to pull some levers, or using items in the environment that happen to be a max of 5 feet away from where they need to be used is not compelling. It's busy work disguised as gameplay. It would be quite a different story if there was more of an enemy presence in those areas.

I miss resource management too. I don't think it was 100% necessary to have it, but a lot of the tension from the early part of Dark Descent was worrying about your lamp oil and tinderboxes.
 
It's really interestin see people come away from this hating it, or finding it lacking an tension or horror. I guess for some, the item management, and lamp lighting really added fear to their gameplay experience. For me it was more of a nuisance. What scared me was the atmosphere and the enviroments/monsters. I still felt I got that with this game. This and Outlast once again prove that the horror genre is and always will be a very subjective matter.
 
Just finished it. Hated it and it's my biggest disappointment of the year so far. I was bored throughout, scares were obvious, no tension. For a game with just about no gameplay and a heavy focus on story you'd expect the story to be, I dunno, good? I was done in 3 hours and I will never play it again. I don't know whose to blame here, Frictional? TCR? Both? Either way it's a misstep for both developers.

Goddammit, I really wanted to love this. After the disappointment that was Outlast I was so ready to call this one out as the true horror experience of the year. I like that soulless, mechanical piece of crap Outlast more than this. Fucking Outlast! I might be overreacting a bit here, but I'm just so disappointed by this, so you'll have to forgive my hyperbole.

I think people's time with AMFP is largely gonna come down to what you expected. If you expected something scarier than TDD you are clearly gonna come away disappointed.

The type of game it turned out to be should have been pretty clear from a while back though. Changing devs to one that are heavily reliant on story and minimalistic gameplay and even more when they initially said the game was gonna be short and then delayed it to make it a longer more fleshed out experience

I was expecting the absolute worst going in after hearing some of the reviews and some of the huge changes they made so I'm having a better time with it I think cos of that. I can totally see why people would be disappointed though
 
Do I need to play Amnesia before this?

Nope, unrelated outside of somewhat similar methods of instilling fear and general mechanics. You should play The Dark Descent anyway though, a Machine for Pigs is a somewhat different game in its goals but it could have come out when the first one did and it wouldn't feel newer. It's not at all a situation where you want to play lets say Assassin's Creed 2 but have to force yourself to finish the first game.

And I personally really dislike that they took out the insanity system. As others mentioned the game feels more like a traditional stealth game now but much scarier of course. I can hide in the dark without any real issues where before I had to move forward despite my fears which was terrifying. Plus it really worked to put you into the character with the breathing, pulsating walls, and so forth. Pigs could have implemented it and been a much scarier game so without it and being based off the same game mechanics it feels a bit empty in comparison.

Still really enjoying what I've played though, remains quite scary and I'm really intrigued as to where the story is heading. I'll finish it in a few hours when it gets dark.
 

Gammacide

Member
Just finished it this afternoon and what a ride that was. Love the story, though many of you are right that it is a different sort of horror that is on display. To me, the game is the perfect union of TCR and FG--it is a game heavy on atmosphere and story with some scares thrown in.

Plus playing as an ethical vegan I left this game actually feeling better about mankind because so much of the game consists of very serious examinations of what we have to sacrifice for so-called 'progress' in our time. Nothing affected me more than seeing the
manpigs in their cells, esp the one that lunges at you but is held back by the chain then goes to sit in the corner of his cage alone
. I nearly cried. It was extremely disturbing to hear about the
murder of your own children as well
. The discussion surrounding how innocents/animals/the underclass feed the machine of progress is one that is ongoing and perhaps more important than ever today.

After watching the credits it seems to me that someone was a pretty big fan of Animal Farm too. ;)
 

Thrakier

Member
Devs should be ashamed because of the performance issues. The engine really doesn't shine and my 670 is capable of far, far, far more. Still there are stuttering and framerate issues. This is amateurish and is taking me out of the immersion.

Oter than that, it's a very intense game with it's own, special atmosphere. They almost took all of the game out of it, so far, though. The most intense moment I had in TDD was when I tried to close a closet door and lock myself in because there was an enemy outside but I was so nervous that I had problems using the mouse to close the door and it just worked in the last second and well then that guy came and...you know the rest.
 

Rooster12

Member
Just finished it. Hated it and it's my biggest disappointment of the year so far. I was bored throughout, scares were obvious, no tension. For a game with just about no gameplay and a heavy focus on story you'd expect the story to be, I dunno, good? I was done in 3 hours and I will never play it again. I don't know whose to blame here, Frictional? TCR? Both? Either way it's a misstep for both developers.

Yeah you know, when you play the game you realize that they're going for something really different here just in terms of the mechanics of the monsters.

In TDD, the monsters were out to kill you and that was their only goal. They were made out be terrifying.

In Machine for Pigs, there are portions of the game where you actually get to see the pig-dudes doing their own thing, going about their "daily lives" in their cells or whatnot, in a sense it's kind of sad seeing them like that.....more disturbing than scary for sure. It's obvious the developers weren't going for the same vibe in TDD, in terms of the monsters, even their physical features are A LOT less scary.

I really like it, when I saw the pigs eating in their cells or whatever you don't feel scared but you do feel a sense of sadness.
 
A little less than 2 hours in but I'm really liking it so far. I like the heavy focus on story and exploring. Love that I don't need to worry about lantern oil or have to bother with those stupid insanity effects.

I can completely understand those that are disappointed, but this is right up my alley. Scary isn't the right word for it - I'd say it's more chilling.

Can't wait to play more.
 
I'm still putting together my thoughts on the game as a whole but did anyone happen to take a screenshot of the ending location? I'm still incredibly confused as to how the game is supposed to look. The haze is overwhelming, there was banding everywhere, was I supposed to turn the contrast down more? I just don't know, I'd love to see how it's supposed to look. This is a game that really needed a video calibration guide.
 
I beat it, I liked it, it was an interesting experience with a weird story. I'm also glad it didn't overstay it's welcome.

It was more cerebral horror versus something like Outlast, which I beat just prior.

Disliked how dumbed down it felt in regards to not being able to click on more things, and so many notes that popped up in addition to being crazy linear.

That said I can appreciate it for what it was, mainly liked the great atmosphere, especially the sewers.
 

isuzu

Member
Just finished it. Thought the game had terrible level design (just corridor after corridor) and the story was meh. Also didn't find the game scary at all. Just cheap jump scares all around and there was no atmosphere. Really shallow and disappointing.
 

CheesecakeRecipe

Stormy Grey
Just finished it. Thought the game had terrible level design (just corridor after corridor) and the story was meh. Also didn't find the game scary at all. Just cheap jump scares all around and there was no atmosphere. Really shallow and disappointing.

This isn't the Outlast thread.
 

Neiteio

Member
Just booted this up. It keeps stuttering every 10 steps when I run. I'm on an Asus Republic of Gamers, GTX560M(2GB), 8GB RAM, 64-bit, i7, etc. Not sure what's needed to potentially identify the problem. This system runs most PC games on all-high settings just fine. But this game has a strange stutter. I'm only in the beginning, barely past the first room.
 

CheesecakeRecipe

Stormy Grey
Just booted this up. It keeps stuttering every 10 steps when I run. I'm on an Asus Republic of Gamers, GTX560M(2GB), 8GB RAM, 64-bit, i7, etc. Not sure what's needed to potentially identify the problem. This system runs most PC games on all-high settings just fine. But this game has a strange stutter. I'm only in the beginning, barely past the first room.

You aren't alone. There's a sizable topic about it on the Frictional Forums.
 
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